BMW 320 or Volvo s40?

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horusd

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I currently drive a BMW 320 se petrol. Very nice car & high spec, but looking to replace it shortly. I have been looking at the Volvo S40 1.6D or maybe 2.0l Diesel or maybe another beemer. Pricewise the s40 is better value, aslo on tax. Any thoughts or opinions lads & lassies? BTW looking at 2009/08 cars.

PS: I live in Dublin & drive very little (closet Green voter!)
 
whatever you do don't buy a Volvo before test driving. I did this with a brand new 1.8 S40 in 1997 and regretted it.... bit of a dog really and the diesels in the range were very poor then.

That said, I did have a love hate relationship with the car and it only failed once in 3 years/100,000 miles and that was a faulty battery. I realise that it was a different era car but some traits tend to follow through.
 
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The latter day S40's are a fine car, but the poster is right about the earlier ones. They also suffered problems with front suspension wear in the very early days (96 <)

Around 2002 or 2003 onward should be a safe enough bet. I saw your post yesterday and came up blank on a reply. They're both obviously good cars; it's really down to preference. I'm biased towards the Volvo myself.
 
Thanks guys, some of the S40's on offer are reallly nice, and the fuel useage & tax are also a reason too. Strangely enough, the one thing I've come accross as a negative on Volvo's is that they don't keep their value.
 
horusd said:
Thanks guys, some of the S40's on offer are reallly nice, and the fuel useage & tax are also a reason too. Strangely enough, the one thing I've come accross as a negative on Volvo's is that they don't keep their value.
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True enough, and I guess this consideration comes down to your future plans. If you want a car for the next 8 years and choose, say, an '07 it's neither here nor there. If on the other hand you want to change in a couple of years time, the BMW would be the better option.

Basic point I'm making is that in the longer term the worth of either will be negligible. It depends on whether or not you want to keep it until it gets 'old old' :)
 
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